The present invention relates in general to analysis of liquid samples and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for the analysis of liquid samples wherein liquid samples to be analyzed are placed into lenticular array sample containers which are then inserted into an optical fourier transform system with the resulting optical fourier transforms being analyzed to determine characteristics of the liquid samples and particles contained within the liquid samples. While the present invention is generally applicable to the analysis of a wide variety of fluids including for example industrial and biological fluids, it will be described herein with reference to the in vitro analysis of biological liquids for which it is initially to be used.
The analysis of biological liquids is vital to medical practice not only for diagnosis and treatment of diseases but also for medical research and development of new treatments and medicines. Such analysis is normally performed by laboratories using sophisticated equipment and test procedures. Unfortunately, typical laboratory equipment is very expensive, bulky and requires highly trained skilled technicians for proper operation. In addition, to ensure adequate quantities of biological liquids for analysis, relatively large samples are forwarded to the laboratories and excess, often dangerous liquids must be properly disposed of by the laboratories.
Such expensive, bulky and complicated laboratory equipment is not practical for use in home health monitoring applications, in remote or hostile environments such as third world rural areas, in manned space programs, in a general practice doctor's office and in many others. It is thus apparent that there is a meed for a simplified arrangement for performing analysis of biological liquids. Preferably, such an arrangement would be small, inexpensive and able to perform analysis of biological liquids with small quantities of the fluids. Ideally, once tested, liquid samples would be easily disposable, preferably contained within a disposable sample container.